


Shooting Stars

by StardustAndAsh



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Blood, Canon Divergence, Episode 2, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Spoilers, but i remember parts of it, i slept through most of that stream because i was exhausted, what if
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-20
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-03-07 01:32:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,778
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13423887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StardustAndAsh/pseuds/StardustAndAsh
Summary: Nott and Caleb have pulled off the "goblin attack" distraction many times. However this time, it doesn't go so smoothly.





	1. Nott Quick Enough

**Author's Note:**

> First time writing for Critical Role, I hope you Critters enjoy!

Nott knew they were shit out if luck as soon as they started trying to distract the crownsguard. Not for the first time that night she regretted suggesting that they go look for the three cloaked figures she had seen. It had just been such an itch in her mind, and it was a better itch to scratch than pickpocketing anyone who happened to wander by. Sometimes things sound so good as an idea but then aren’t as good when they actually happened. A lot of things weren’t as good as they were in ideas actually, now that Nott came to think of it. Travelling was one of those things. Nott spent a lot of time sleeping in the woods while travelling with Caleb and it was always a lot more work than any of the stories implied.

This plan was another.

It was not the first time they’d faked a goblin attack, but Nott’s heart was already beating fast with restless nervousness and she never really wanted to hurt Caleb. She wiggled in Caleb’s grasp, making some snuffling growls. Lucky for her, Caleb was almost a good actor as he was a wizard. Caleb was really good at most things.

It hurt a bit when Caleb threw her into the wall, but it was very convincing. She even had to gasp for breath a bit. She wasn’t expecting the punch to the face, but if Caleb thought it would help them distract the guards it was okay. She could hear the guards and Caleb talking, but wasn’t really paying attention. She was more worried about the hot, sticky blood running down her nose and soaking into her only set of clothes. For one wild moment she thought about how her nose might look crooked and ugly now. Like a goblin could really worry about their looks when no one liked how goblins looked no matter what.

But then the guards were close. Too close. Nott could see their eyes beneath their helms; dark beads that glittered in the light of the moon. They were so screwed. Nott shivered. She wanted a drink, she wanted to run, she wanted to go with Caleb and leave this town behind. Sure, talking with people who saw her as a goblin and didn’t run away was nice, really nice, but so was not facing down guards. Nott looked up at Caleb and saw the tightness in his jaw and the deep furrow to his brow. He was worried. For real worried, not just the usual concerned about Nott’s habits worried.

That’s when Nott noticed the drawn sword in the closest guard’s hand. Maybe Caleb wasn’t getting them out of this one. She tried wiggling in Caleb’s tense grip. One hand scrabbled for her weapons but found nothing but the worn folds of her cloak.

“Hey, I’ve got this under control,” growled Caleb.

Nott’s eyes jumped between the guard and Caleb. She reached out for Caleb and dug her fingers into the unfamiliar cloth of the crownsguard uniform. As much as she hated it, she was scared.

She didn’t see the moment the sword slid between her ribs, but she felt the burn of metal and heard the guard’s dark laugh. Her eyes were fixed on Caleb, begging him to make it better, like he always did when she was scared or anxious or worried after she stole something.

A cough bubbled up through her lips. More blood dripped down her chin.

“Caleb?” Nott gurgled, hating the sound. She shouldn’t sound like that. Caleb didn’t need to be any more worried. She’d be fine. Caleb would take her back to the inn and she’d have a sleep and then tomorrow everything would be fine. It worked for Caleb it would work for her.

“Oh fuck,” was what Caleb had to say.

Nott blinked at him. That seemed like a bit of an understatement. She blinked again and the guards were gone and the world had gone a bit sideways-like. The stars were pretty though. Nott liked the stars. They were a constant thing, and Caleb had told her the ones that flashed across the sky were lucky. Wishing stars seemed like magic, and Caleb knew all about magic so she believed him. Her yellow eyes scanned what sky she could see but no shooting stars whizzed by.

“Nott, are you with me?” asked Caleb as he tapped at her cheek. The brow furrow was deeper than Nott had ever seen it. This being in town business wasn’t good for Caleb. She should have found them a cave to hide out in while he recovered rather than an inn.

“Where would I be going?” asked Nott right back. They were in the middle of something. Sneaking somewhere. She wasn’t quite sure anymore. Nott wasn’t sure if she was standing anymore either. She could feel Caleb’s warm sturdy arms wrapped around her yet everything seemed cold.

“I need you to put pressure right here, Nott,” said Caleb, taking one of her thin hands in his own and guiding it down over her left side, “Can you do that for me?”

“If that’s what you want, sure,” said Nott. She tried her best, but fuck she was tired and pressing down made more sticky blood ooze between her fingers and by whatever god was watching it hurt. It would be a lot better if she went to sleep. That sounded nice. Caleb wouldn’t be happy with her though if she did.

“Ooh, she doesn’t look good, does she?” asked a high accented voice. Nott knew that voice, its owner was nice. Like a blueberry all bursting with sweetness.

Nott looked up and it took her a moment to connect the blue tiefling to a name. Jester. This was Jester. Nott wanted to call her a friend.

“I look better than you,” Nott tried to joke. At least Jester attempted to smile. Caleb’s frown deepened.

“You heal people, right? Get healing,” said Caleb, nodding his head in Nott’s direction.

“I can!”

Jester lay her hands on Nott, took a deep breath in, and nothing happened. Well, Nott felt a bit of heat coming off Jester, and her nose twinged a bit with healing magic, but her side still felt an awful mix of burning and cold.

“Apparently, I can’t heal that much,” said Jester, worried now.

Caleb turned a steely glare on Jester. “What do you mean you can’t heal that much? Try again.”

“I did try! And it was not working!”

“I said try again.”

Nott whined. They were loud. Loud people made her want her flask and the comfort of the alcohol inside. She also wanted a bed. And maybe a hug from Caleb. He was already kind of giving her a hug, but she meant a real one, one where they were both on their feet and not bleeding and Frumpkin was purring at her from Caleb’s shoulder.

“You’re going to be alright Nott, I promise,” said Caleb softly.

“I believe you,” replied Nott just as softly. Her eyes felt real heavy. She didn’t think Caleb would be too mad if she maybe fell asleep here instead of waiting until they were back at the inn. It was all too easy to let her eyes slip shut and her head loll against Caleb’s shoulder. Nott could hear his voice rumbling in his chest, and then she could hear nothing at all.

 


	2. Chapter 2

Caleb knew he was too lenient with Nott. Far too lenient. She stole, he helped. She cried, he bought her whiskey. It wasn’t perfect, but what did he know about raising a goblin. It’s not like he had found it in a book.

Letting her go out in the middle of the night in a big town to chase down three mysterious figures was probably not his best idea, even if they weren’t going alone. From the moment Nott brought it up Caleb had a bad feeling niggling at the back of his mind. The feeling only grew as the hours passed and the stars wheeled slowly overhead.

The streets were quiet. Far too quiet even for the dead of night. Though Caleb hadn’t been to a bigger city in months he remembered the slow beat of life of a city in moonlight. There were drunks stumbling outside taverns, brothels with sweet-smelling braziers lit at their doors, the sound of people floating out through open windows above darkened shops. Here there was only dark windows and the quiet metallic noise of the crownsguard patrol wandering through the streets. Nott led the way with quiet grace. It was always a wonder to watch her melt into the shadows, so seamless there was no way Caleb would ever have spotted her if he hadn’t watched her do it.

Turns out Nott’s mystery figures had better things to do than dash by the same corner every night at two in the morning. Not that Caleb had expected them to show but he couldn’t tell Nott no, not when she had been so excited by the mystery. It was nice to see her excited about something other than the most recent stolen bauble or a full flask.

But somehow, as it always did, things got out of control.

“Who goes there,” called a guard with a deep voice as they passed through the docks.

Caleb felt his heart sink. At least he was wearing a crownsguard uniform, but Nott was still just wearing her travelling clothes. She didn’t even have any armour. She was also charging at him, snarling and snapping. The “goblin attack” scheme.

Caleb did a quick mental calculation and came to a quick conclusion. As Nott got within a few feet of him he reached out and grabbed Nott by her scrawny arm and slammed her into the wall of a nearby structure.

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Jester dash for the loch. He wasn’t sure she could swim but maybe if it distracted the guards enough they could get away with it.

“I’ve got this under control,” shouted Caleb over his shoulder. Lies. He very much felt like this was far out of his control.

 For good measure Caleb thought a quick apology before hauling back and punching Nott in the face. He must have punched harder than he meant to as blood began to flow in a steady stream down Nott’s face and down her front. It was a rather unpleasant sight as it caught in her teeth. Caleb felt guilt squeeze his heart. Poor Nott just blinked up at him with those trusting yellow eyes.

Those eyes flicked back over Caleb’s shoulder and he turned to see the two members of the crownsguard standing behind him, swords drawn. About ten feet behind them he could see Fjord and Beauregard inching closer and at the ready.

“Hey, I have it under control,” said Caleb, trying to manoeuver himself in front of Nott. He could feel her tense beneath her hand and knew they were about ten seconds away from a full goblin meltdown.

With his mind going a mile a minute trying to think his way out of the situation Caleb could feel Nott digging her fingers into his arm. The crownsguard were too close. Far too close. Caleb did not even have time to react. The guard closest to them moved so fast Caleb just caught the flash of silver as his blade bit deep into Nott’s side.

The noise that came from Nott’s throat would haunt Caleb’s nightmares for years to come.

“Caleb?” asked Nott wetly. A bubble of blood burst through her lips and added to the mess on her chin.

“Oh fuck.”

Fjord, Mollymauk, and Beauregard pounced upon the two crownsguard as soon as the man had struck. They dragged them back, away from Nott and Caleb and towards Jester’s waiting spells. It did not take much for the three of them to dispatch the crownsguard, and with a well placed punch from Beau it was over.

For Caleb his own personal hell had just begun. He felt Nott waver before he saw it. Gently, he lowered Nott to the ground and cradled her into his arms. This was his fault. Entirely his fault. With a gentle hand he patted Nott’s cheek. Slowly, Nott’s gaze focussed on Caleb rather than the empty space over his shoulder.

“Nott? Are you with me?” he asked in a quiet voice.

“Where would I be going?” Nott’s words came out quiet and slurred. Caleb’s worry skyrocketed to all new heights.

With the hand not supporting Nott, Caleb examined the wound as best he could under the darkness of the night. Dark blood coated his finger, but he found the source on the left side of Nott’s ribs. Gods he needed to start getting them better food. Or maybe more food in general would be a good start. First he needed to get the bleeding under control. He took one of Nott’s hands and brought it down to the wound.

“I need you to put pressure right here, Nott. Can you do that for me?”

“If that’s what you want. Sure.”

Nott’s eyes were wandering back over his shoulder without taking in their surroundings. Caleb added his own hand on top of Nott’s small one and pressed down, trying to ignore the whine she voiced in protest. Caleb didn’t turn at the sound of approaching footsteps. Nott was far more important.

“Ooh, she doesn’t look good, does she,” Jester said as she peered over Caleb’s shoulder. If Caleb’s hands weren’t full he would have punched the tiefling. His whole world was bleeding in his arms and she sounded disgusted.

“…look better than you,” mumbled Nott in his arms.

“You heal people, right? Get healing.” Caleb nodded his head at Nott, leaving no argument in his gaze.

Jester held up her hands and stepped closer. “I can!”

She lay her hands on Nott’s shoulders heavier than Caleb liked, but he bit his lip and kept his mouth shut.  A dim glow lit Jester’s hands as she invoked the magic. Caleb waited. Jester’s brows came together in confusion.

“Apparently, I can’t heal that much,” said Jester, looking up at Caleb with wide eyes.

“What do you mean you can’t heal that much? Try again,” Caleb begged.

“I did try! And it was not working!” Jester cried.

“I said try again.”

Jester just shook her head at him. It wouldn’t work. This wasn’t something that could just be magicked away by someone as inexperienced as Jester. In his arms Nott whined again. Caleb turned his attention back to her rather than the approaching monk and half-orc. He pulled Nott closer into his arms, ignoring any drop of wetness that may or may not have been rolling down his cheeks.

“You’ll be alright Nott, I promise,” Caleb whispered, saying the words more for himself.

Nott mumbled something back before going completely limp. For a second, panic overtook Caleb. For the span of five heartbeats he thought the world had ended. Then he heard her wet breathing and all the tension dropped from his shoulders.

“Yo Caleb, if I’m gonna bandage that up you’re going to have to let her go a little.”

Beauregard’s voice startled Caleb. She was nudging at the hand he had pressed into Nott’s side with one of her own and in her other hand she held a roll of clean white bandages. Caleb just nodded and moved, still holding onto Nott as best he could while Beauregard carefully bandaged her up. Some distance away Mollymauk and Fjord regarded the scene with hard faces from where they stood in front of the bodies of the two crownsguard. Once Beauregard was finished Caleb heaved himself upright while cradling Nott.

“I understand if you all wish to continue investigating, but I hope you won’t blame me for returning to the inn,” said Caleb. He didn’t wait for a response before turning and walking back in the direction of the inn. His concern for Nott was paramount.

It was a bit of a surprise to have four sets of footsteps following him back.

Caleb turned to find the others trailing after him like worried ducklings. It was funny in a way. Caleb had always bristled any time strangers tried to interact with Nott, trying to protect her from anyone who might wish to do her harm simply for the fact she was a goblin. Yet here were four people who the two of them had known for less than two days concerned about Nott’s fate. It was comforting. Caleb let the warm feeling carry him all the way back to the inn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's it. Unless you want more of this story for whatever reason. I hope you all enjoyed it!

**Author's Note:**

> I may not have watched all of last night's stream but this part has been floating around with all sorts of what if scenarios in my brain.
> 
> I'll write a Caleb chapter to go with this once I see the ep in full on monday!


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